The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1887-08-05
FOR THE BULLETIN.
ME-. EDITOR:

I
ton before the people to be decided
by d vote III the near future. and
that question is naturally Il mat ter
! of discussion by the people And
/ think should be discussed very
prudently and in accordance with
} the past history of the country.
[ attended a very pleasant picnic
among my neighbors last Saturday
to hear discussion of this question.
/ listened to tire most cXtravagant
abuse Of old "JOnn Barley Corn"
and all his practices, and heard him
charged with being responsible for
all the crimes and misfOrtunes that
the human family is heir to, and
that his evil influences were cOntInu~
ally on the increase Finally l came
to tie conclusion that if even one
half heard was true that we should
have been driven back INTO barba-
rism or mOEkeyism or some other
sort of ism long before this constl-
tutional amendment was ever
thought Of. But l consoled myself
| by the reflection that the country
still survives right in defiance of
whisky for it has been plentiful all
the time.
But are We as a reasoning people
to be driven by these unreasonable
and unwarranted charges into the
belief that all crime results from
whiskey? Driven in to the belief that
the men who coOly and d CELEBRATE. y
concoct murder do SO because they
are drunk? No my friends it
results from the promptings of a
wi ckel and depraved heart, socially
bent on mischief. And so it is with
all the minor offences and petty
larcenies. The man who steals a
bushel of corn or ide of bacon Is
prObab bly, pro mpted to do so by ham
ger or some other cause and not be-
cause he is drunk.
True there is an occasional man
slaughter or black eye or bloody
nose that occurs from drinking.
But they result from the heat Of
passion, and there are a thousand
things that are better calculated to
excite passion than whiskey, for
a drunk man is generally in a good
humor with himself and the balance
Of mankind, and one of my obiec~
tions to him is that he is disposed to
be a little too friendly. But our
prohibition friends say vote for this
amendment, and it will prevent all
these crimes and causalitIes, but |
for one am not prepared to believe
that. For the amendment does not
propose to prohibit the manufacture
of whiskey, but makes every man
free distlller to manufacture all he
pleases for the use of himself and
family, provided he don't sell any,
or pay any taxes. Oh Prohibition,
what fatal foOlishness is being
perpetrated in thy name!
But, Mr.. Editor, aside from all
this foollshness, 1t must be admitted
that the whiskey traffic Is a distur-
hing element, and has been ever
since the foundation of our govern
ment, and intact came near de-
stroying the government in its i'm
fancy. and perhaps, would have
done so, if any other man than Gen
Washington had been President at
the time. But he, by his frmness
and determination of purpose to see
that the laws were faithfully executed
succeeded in quoting the whiskey
insurrection, and gave peace to the
country but not until he resorted to
force. But / only alIude to this to
call our minds to the great danger
of our portion of the people under
taking to destroy the rights and
property of another.
You remember that some years
ago there was a drunken Irishman
named Murphy, dug up out of the
bugs Of Ireland some where, and he
professed reformation, and found his
way over to this country to reform 4
whiskey drinking world and he
hOurished muchly for a while, and
think done much good while the
excitement lasted, But the excite
ment soon died out. and with 1t
died out all Mr.. Murphy's plans,
and left us to contend with old
whiskey as best We might. But you
ask, eff Mr.. Murphy did any good,
why not our prohibition 90 moreP"
The reason Is this, that his plan was
powerless for harm. He did not pro-
pose to rovolutionlze an establlshe d
system, and destroy the business,
rights and property of any portion
of our citizents, but your prohibition
plan proposes to do both, and in my
Judgment is powerless for good,
and is a dangerous experiment, and
may produce great harm.
Now this whiskey question has
been source of much legislation.
much discussion, agitation and
thought among our people. Many
of our ablest and best men haye
been called upon to devise WAYS,
and means to control it in the best
possible manner, and the result of
their deliberations was the present
license system, and that gave peace
and quiet to the country tor along
time. And in my Judgment is the